Veterinary Assistant program offered at SSU

A love of animals and the knowledge of how to work with and take care of them are necessary to become a veterinary assistant.

The Veterinary Assistant program at Shawnee State University is being offered from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Tuesdays and Thursdays from Nov. 6, 2012 through January 15, 2013.

The program is designed in two parts and students must successfully complete Level 1 before enrolling in Level II. Veterinary Assistant training costs $559.00 for each level.

Veterinary Assistant Training teaches assistants how to work with and take care of animals, giving medicines and assisting veterinarians and veterinarian technicians with examinations and tests.

The assistant helps provide medical care to sick and injured animals and plays a very hands-on role under the supervision of the licensed veterinarian and the veterinarian technician.

Candidates for the program will need to have a strong background in biology and math. Ohio does not currently require certification to become a veterinarian assistant. This is a non-college credit professional development training program designed to help students have a professional edge when it comes to hiring and job placement.

Two books are required “Learning Veterinary Terminology,” 2nd Edition, 2002, by Douglas F. McBride and “Tasks for the Veterinary Assistant,” 2nd Edition, 2009, by Paula Pattengale. The American Red Cross “Cat First Aid” and “Dog First Aid” books will be provided.

Instructors for the program are Dr. Gail Counts and Tim Wells, co-owners of Shawnee Animal Clinic. Counts serves as a district representative to the Ohio Veterinary Medical Association Board of Trustees, and Wells is a member of the Ohio Veterinary Technician Association.

Registration may be made in person at University Outreach Services located in the basement of Massie Hall, just inside the south entrance and parking is; by mail, SSU University Outreach, 940 Second Street, Portsmouth, OH 45662; by fax, (740) 351-3598; or phone (740) 351-3274, toll free at (866) 672-8778 (credit card only).

For more information, call or e-mail Debra Schwamberger at dschwamberge@shawnee.edu.

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